Splicers for optic fibers are known in the prior art. But for many prior art splicers, the problem can be one of stability. More specifically, since optical fibers are extremely small relative to other types of cables, the fusers that splice the cables are often also small. To accomplish the splice, the optical fiber splicers typically must fix the ends to be spliced in position, with very small tolerances. To do this, the fusion splicers themselves typically have small cable anchors or vices, however they are not usually capable of handling bending loads from even lightly armored cable, and the fusers typically only provide stabilization one to two inches from the bare fiber splice. However, since almost all cable runs are much, much larger than one to two inches, this stabilization area is typically inadequate in any environment other than a lab environment.
In addition to the above considerations, although the optical fiber fusion is often very small and light, the optical fiber cable is often surrounded by bulky, shielding or armor, which can create additionally stability issues when attempting to splice a very small splicing area. Still further, cable runs are often in remote, rugged areas, where it would be extremely undesirable to pull the cable up, take the cable to a lab or similar splicing facility, splice the cable, and then re-run the cable once it is spliced. What is needed is a field splicing device, which can work with existing splicing units, but provide enhanced stability during three phases: 1) During the staging of the cables prior to splicing; 2) During the removal of the spliced cable from the fusion splicing section to slide on basic heat shrink/steel tube reinforcement; and, 3) During placement of the basic heat shrink tube into the heat source provided on most commercial splices. Without increased management of the stability of the splicing platform during these stages, management of the exposed, delicate fiber throughout these phases can consistently lead to breakage without proper stabilization.
In view of the above, it is an object of the present invention to provide a portable fiber optic splicer that can allow for steady and safe splicing of fiber optic cables utilizing fusion splicing out in the field once the cable is deployed. Another object of the present invention is to provide a portable fiber optic splicer that can facilitate fusion splicing such that the splice is not kinked or broken during the process by accidently knocking the two ends to be spliced, or by separating the two cables too much before shielding is applied to the splice. Yet another object of the present invention to provide a portable fiber optic splicer that can firmly grip the cable ends at a sufficient distance from the splicer to prevent off angle jolts which typically occur in the field while attempting to make field repairs of optic fiber cable. Still another object of the present invention to provide a portable fiber optic splicer that can be adapted to be used both in the field and in the laboratory without requiring any major configuration changes. Another object of the present invention to provide a portable fiber optic splicer, which can be easy to manufacture, and which can be used in a cost-efficient manner.